Myspace.com Logo

MySpace is a social networking website with an interactive, user-submitted network of friends, personal profiles, blogs, groups, photos, music, and videos for teenagers and adults internationally. Its headquarters are in Beverly Hills, California, USA, where it shares an office building with its immediate owner, Fox Interactive Media; which is owned by News Corporation, which has its headquarters in New York City. In June 2006, MySpace was the most popular social networking site in the United States. According to comScore, MySpace was overtaken internationally by main competitor Facebook in April 2008, based on monthly unique visitors.The company employs 300 staff and does not disclose revenues or profits separately from News Corporation. The 100 millionth account was created on August 6, 2006 in the Netherlands and the site counted approximately 106 million accounts on September 8, 2006.

MySpace is a free online community composed of personal profiles aimed foremostly at a younger membership. A MySpace profile typically includes a digital photo and in-depth information about personal interests. The amount of detail included in the profile is up to the user and submitted voluntarily. MySpace policy requires users be at least 14 years of age to join. Members routinely send each other messages and “network” or socialize within the MySpace community.

The format of MySpace makes it easy for anyone to submit profile information, even if they have little online experience. Though the domain has proved incredibly popular, reportedly hosting over 60 million profiles, it has also come under fire. The concern is that the vast majority of MySpace members may be too inexperienced to realize the potential danger of posting personal information online. Some profiles contain not only a picture, but the user’s first and last name, location, and details like favorite music and foods. This information enables a predator to easily target and befriend a victim.

MySpace members might also choose to fill out “the survey.” The survey asks such questions as whether the member has ever had sex, skinny-dipped, smoked, drunk alcohol, or taken drugs. Members that post to MySpace expect their profiles to be read by kids their own age, explaining the often suggestive answers and leading innuendo typical of teenage bravado. Provocative or not, MySpace profiles provide a “protected” hunting ground where potential predators can choose, stalk and befriend victims, sight unseen. Bolstered by a plethora of personal information, the predator can easily manipulate the potential victim into a false sense of security and familiarity while misrepresenting himself entirely through his own false profile. Though forbidden by MySpace, false profiles are all but impossible to prevent within the framework.

In some cases, MySpace members come forward when solicited. For example, in February 2006, CBS reported that a 14-year-old girl was approached for sex though MySpace by Robert Wise, a 38-year-old man. Wise was subsequently arrested when police assumed the girl’s identity while Wise, unknowingly, continued to ask for sex.

Other MySpace members haven’t been so lucky. Several reports from around the US have linked MySpace to children who were either murdered or went missing. Just before 14-year-old Judy Cajuste of New Jersey was murdered in January 2006, the girl apparently told friends she’d met a man in his twenties through MySpace. Similarly, 15-year-old Kayla Reed of Northern California was reportedly an active member of MySpace until the day she disappeared on 2 December 2005. Her body was found seven weeks later, the victim of murder.

While the connection of these and many other reports to MySpace may only be coincidental, the implication is troubling. Due to growing concerns, in April 2006, MySpace announced it would begin serving public information ads geared towards educating its users. The banner ads are part of a larger campaign that began in 2004, initiated by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Additionally, as of 1 May 2006, Hemanshu Nigan, a former federal prosecutor specializing in child exploitation, began overseeing the safety division of MySpace. Nigan previously worked for Microsoft Corporation, developing computer strategies designed to better protect children.

Popularity of Myspace

With its main headquarters located in Beverly Hills, California, today MySpace is owned by Fox Interactive Media, and has the distinction of being recognized internationally. In April of 2008, MySpace was overtaken in popularity on an international level for the first time by Facebook. However, with the proposed improvements that MySpace has in the works, it is entirely possible that the site will soon overtake Facebook once more.

Myspace - A Place for Friends

Why is MySpace so popular? In the beginning, there was not nearly as much to use and enjoy when putting together a profile such as MySpace layouts , widgets, graphics, and apps, as well as music and video content. Today, MySpace users can enjoy features such as MySpace Applications, including Bumper Stickers and Real Top Friends. Music is a big part of MySpace, as bands old and new use the site to post samples of their music for all to enjoy. Many bands were discovered on MySpace, and it remains a prime spot to read news and pinpoint concert dates for music lovers. Forums, polls, groups, and the new MySpace Karaoke are just a few of the many things a Myspace user can participate in.

People flocked to the site because of the social aspects of MySpace. The idea of being able to communicate online with people from other parts of the world just as easily as you could chat online with a co-worker or friend from your own city was far too intriguing for most computer users to pass up. Then ability to share photos, music, and videos just cinched the deal! In 2006, there were around 106 million MySpace user accounts. The social networking site continues to be highly popular, attracting around 230,000 new members each and every day

Revenue model
MySpace operates solely on revenues generated by advertising as its user model possesses no paid-for features for the end user. Through its Web site and affiliated ad networks, MySpace is second only to Yahoo! in its capacity to collect data about its users and thus in its ability to use behavioral targeting to select the ads each visitor sees.

On August 8, 2006, search engine Google signed a $900 million deal to provide a Google search facility and advertising on MySpace. MySpace has proven to be a windfall for many smaller companies that provide widgets or accessories to the social networking giant. Companies such as Slide.com, RockYou!, and YouTube were all launched on MySpace as widgets providing additional functionality to the site. Other sites created layouts to personalize the site and made hundreds of thousands of dollars for its owners most of whom were in their late teens and early twenties.

In November 2008, MySpace announced that user-uploaded content that infringed on copyrights held by MTV and its subsidiary networks would be redistributed with advertisements that would generate revenue for the companies.